Because I'm a Rockstar
by ThePurpleMoon
Summary: Spashley. AU. Spencer is walking home after finals at NYU, only to slip on ice...and meet a rockstar? Maybe not the rockstar you're thinking.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own South of Nowhere or any of its characters. I'm just lucky enough to take them out to play a little bit. Nor do I own Edward Cullen or Twilight (thanks, Stephanie Myer!) It's the holidays; please don't sue me :)

Summary: Spencer slips while walking home...and ends up face-to-face with a certain rockstar who seems intent on showing her her past and the "error" of her ways. Kinda "A Christmas Carol"-esque. Spencer is a student at NYU, and eventually the rest of it should begin to piece together...at least I'm hoping it does.

Also, if the story is "rambling" ever, that is because it's simply Spencer's train of thought that we're allowed to see, even with third person style.

Rating: T. Some language in this chapter.

Author's Note: I'm home on winter break, and after finishing *my* finals and walking home one night...This story popped into my head, so I felt the urge to put it out there. I'm not completely sure how long it will be, but I should be able to finish it while home for Christmas break. Hopefully you enjoy it. If not, however...that's okay too. I always appreciate reviews though :) And thanks to all of you who read it... And to a certain friend of mine who always reads my stories first...This is officially for you. Merry Christmas.

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"Thank goodness that's over!"

"You got that right," Spencer grinned cheekily at her friend Chelsea. They had just finished their last exam before winter break. They were both officially free! Well, once Spencer walked back to her apartment off-campus, then she was free. Until she got back to her apartment, she was mostly just cold. She briefly wished that she could remember how long it took for frost bite to take effect. "I'll see you later tonight for celebratory drinks?"

"I basically live at your apartment, Spence." Chelsea paused for a moment, debating momentarily before adding, "That's a yes."

"Good!" The two relaxed into a comfortable silence as they crossed the campus together. They had met last year when Chelsea had started dating Spencer's brother Glen. Glen and Chelsea were on-again-off-again, but Chelsea and Spencer had hit it off immediately, becoming good friends. It was then that they had decided to take a class together, just a general education class, to help motivate the other to remember to study for the tests…

"Spencer! Watch for the ice!" The blonde reached out and grabbed onto her friend's arm, which luckily saved her from falling.

Spencer scoffed and brushed imaginary dust off of her coat while she joked, "I would manage to find the only patch of ice…"

"There's more of it; that's just what I nearly slipped on when going into class. I forgot to warn you…Sorry." Chelsea smiled briefly at her forgetfulness, but Spencer was already shrugging her forgiveness.

"It's okay. I have ten more blocks to walk. I'm sure I'll end up falling sometime."

"Well, good luck with that! Try not to!" Chelsea waved before wandering into the library on campus. She had to return a few books before the campus shut down for winter blonde pulled her hat more tightly around her ears and started walking toward the direction of her apartment, nearly slipping again while doing so. Winter in New York City could be harsh sometimes.

Spencer looked around at the snow on the buildings and took in a deep breath of air. Holy cold air. But still the snow was really pretty sometimes. Spencer tilted her head to the side slightly to admire a patch of fresh snow on campus; it hadn't been walked on yet, and it was just so…shiny and white. It reminded her of that movie that she had gone to. What was it called…Twilight! That was the name of the movie. The snow sparkled like Edward Cullen did when he stood in the sun. Hm…Vampire snow? That was a weird thought.

The blonde shook her head, hoping to clear her wandering thoughts, only to notice that there was a loud chiming coming from a…clock tower? She had no idea where there was a clock tower in that area. Maybe if she looked around, then she could see it, and, "FUCK!" Spencer hit the ground with a thunk. "Fucking ice. Fucking clock tower." She still didn't know where there was a clock tower in the area and…whatever. She would do this. Fall on the ice. Urgh. She started to sit up, but everything was blurry, and all she could do was think about the tests that she had been studying for…Resting her head seemed like a much better idea.

_If Steven and Maria are dancing a waltz and Steven really would rather be dancing with Mark, what time will the trains collide?_

_A) 3:45 p.m._

_B) 1300_

_C) Peru_

_D) To populate the isle with Calibans_

_E) Spencer, your brain is fried._

E. Fried brain. That was the answer. The blonde girl blinked and looked around. Nothing happened. She was still lying on the ground confused. She closed her eyes, and then opened them again, wondering if that would change things. This time a snowflake fell in her left eye. After blinking furiously a few times, Spencer tried to sit up, but after a few seconds, everything was swirling again, so she lay back down on the ice. "Fuck."

"Well, I think that'd be a bit inappropriate." Spencer turned her head to the right to see a lanky boy in a leather jacket standing next to her. He was sporting a platinum blonde Mohawk and more eye liner than she wore on a night out to the clubs.

"Who are you?"

He shrugged easily and offered a smirk, "The ghost of Christmas past."

"You're funny," she scoffed and wished that she could get up and walk away.

"You're concussed."

This time he had her attention. "Who says 'concussed'?"

"The ghost of Christmas past."

"Are you trying to tell me that I'm dead? Because you're definitely not funny then."

"I already told you that you're concussed."

Spencer sighed, realizing that she was not getting out of the conversation; she would need him to help her get up at the very least, so she might as well play along with his game. "Can't you have a real name?"

"You can call me Raife."

"As in Davies?" The guy nodded. "Ashley's dad?" Another nod. "But you're so young...and alive!" Spencer realized what she had just said before gasping out a, "No offense?"

"Christmas past, remember?" Raife smirked again before leaning down to rap his right knuckles lightly against Spencer's forehead.

"Oh, right." Honestly, Spencer didn't know what to do, but there seemed no easy way out of the situation, and he did look a lot like Raife Davies… "If this is true, where's the real me?"

"You have to stand up first."

"It makes me dizzy."

"Splitting in two can do that to a person." Spencer was starting to get really sick of his know-it-all smirk.

"Holy fuck!" Sitting up sucked. It sucked more when Spencer remembered who she was with, "Sorry, Ashley's Dad."

"I'm a rock star. I can handle your language."

He reached a hand out to the young woman, and she was able to stand up more easily that time. Spencer looked at the blonde body at her feet. "That's me." Panic began to set in, "I'm…"

"Knocked out temporarily. You'll be okay, just –"

"Concussed?"

"Yup."

Spencer considered touching her body, just to see what would happen. "Am I really just going to lie there?"

"Nah, your friend will be walking by in…three…two…one…"

The spirit Spencer waved frantically upon seeing her friend walking out of the library, "Chelsea!"

"She can't hear you." Stupid Mr. Know-It-All-Ashley's-Dad. "Come on, Kid. We have places to go and people to see." He reached out a hand to grab Spencer's arm, hoping to drag her away. Spencer was waving her fingers in front of Chelsea's face while Chelsea focused on Spencer's body. "She still can't hear you."

"Is this because I haven't gone Christmas shopping yet? Because I swear I will. I just…"

Raife covered the rambling Spencer's mouth with his hand and shook his head. He reached out and took her other hand in his; suddenly everything began to spin again. Spencer was beginning to wonder if she was passing out again, only before she could say anything, everything was still again. Raife uncovered her mouth and pointed at a window, "Shhh…Just look."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I still do not own South of Nowhere or any of its characters.

Author's Note: Thanks to anyone who reviewed; I appreciate it. And yes, this is a Spashley story, I promise. Hopefully the flashbacks will prove to be entertaining, insightful, and not annoying :) The length of chapters will vary, but I just kinda wanted to get this next tidbit out to show some Spashley interaction. How Spashley met, etc. will be eventually explained too.

Bold and italicized words means that it is "the past" that Raife and Spencer are viewing.

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The weather outside was frightful, but the spirits of Raife Davies and Spencer Carlin felt no temperature change. Spencer wiped a few flakes of snow off of a window, her window, only to see herself sitting in her bedroom. They hadn't gone back very far in time, only a week or so. She was studying for her history final, and if she remembered correctly, that was about the time that…

"_**Spencer Carlin, 20 year old student at NYU, was found earlier today surrounded by textbooks. She has been declared legally insane, and is being held at…"**_

_**A tired Spencer looked up from her book only to frown at her roommate. "Ashley, stop that."**_

_**Ashley bounded across the room and settled down next to Spencer on her bed, effectively disturbing the piles of notes that the blonde had arranged accordingly. "Stop what?"**_

"_**Your detective voice."**_

_**Ashley grinned and poked Spencer's thigh for emphasis, "It's amazing."**_

"_**It's creepy and manly."**_

"_**You don't like manly?" Spencer glared at her friend. "Yeah, you wouldn't."**_

"_**Ash, I'm studying."**_

"_**You're dying." The brunette tapped on her friend's forehead. "Your brain has to be completely fried. Come hang out with me!"**_

"_**You need to study too."**_

_**Ashley sighed overdramatically and shoved some more papers out of the way. "Studious Spencer, can Fun Spencer come out to play?"**_

"_**Ash!" Spencer tried to be strong and be angry about her papers flying off of her bed, but Ashley was just too…Ashley. She was cute and bouncy at all the right times, meaning when Spencer badly needed a break.**_

"_**What?" The brunette grinned cheekily at her friend, knowing that she was winning her over, which pushed Spencer right back into grumpiness. She didn't like losing and easily admitting to Ashley that she wanted a break was losing.**_

"_**God, I think you're secretly six years old, not twenty-one."**_

"_**Maybe," and there was another grin from Ashley. "Will you come play now?" Grins from both parties but followed with a shake of the head from Spencer, "How about now?"**_

"_**Okay, officially kicking you out."**_

_**Ashley was willing to try anything to keep herself from being kicked out; being kicked out wasn't in the plans! "First, can I tell you something?"**_

_**Spencer shrugged nonchalantly and flipped the page in her textbook, "Sure."**_

"_**Nevermind," Ashley pouted.**_

_**She was cute when she pouted, but Spencer was not giving in, "Okay." Spencer was giving in, "What?"**_

"_**You're just going to let me not tell you?"**_

_**Spencer shrugged again, "You'll tell me when you're ready."**_

"_**That's so boring!" Ashley picked up one of the blonde's textbooks. Ew. She was glad she wasn't in anatomy, though studying could be fun if… "Okay, I'm ready."**_

"_**Okay."**_

_**Ashley waited until Spencer looked at her; she wanted her full attention for this one. "Aiden asked me out."**_

"_**Oh."**_

_**Ashley frowned and tried to get the other girl to look her in the eyes; suddenly she was seemingly content with looking away. "That wasn't the reaction I was looking for."**_

"_**You two have dated five times within the past month." Spencer rolled her eyes once Ashley still wasn't embellishing on her story. "Okay, tell me what kind of reaction you were looking for."**_

"_**Excitement?" Spencer's hands shot up to the sides of her face and she murmured a squeal of excitement. Ashley suggested, "Horror?" and Spencer grabbed at her own hair and opened her mouth to mime a scream.**_

_**Ashley threw her hands over her hand and laid down on the bed, "You're pathetic; I should just go tell Madison instead." Spencer swatted her with a pillow. "Finally! A reaction! Do I get more reactions if I date Madison? That glare is so a yes."**_

_**Spencer played with the fringe of her pillow before looking into the dark eyes of the girl beside her. Her voice was almost too quiet as she asked, "Do you want to date Aiden again?"**_

Spencer's face pulled away from the window before the Ashley in the past answered and before the Spencer in the past could say anything more. "Okay, Mr. Davies, I've seen this one already. Can I have a different one?"

"Call me Raife."

"Can I have a different one?"

Raife nodded toward the window, "You need to watch this one first."

Spencer pouted, "I don't wanna."

"And you call my daughter six?" He sighed and ran a hand against the top of his Mohawk. He sounded exasperated, even to Spencer's ears, and she wasn't listening. "You're missing what I want to show you, Spencer. I can't show you anything if you won't watch."

The blonde barely refrained from stamping her foot. She didn't want to throw a tantrum; Raife was right, she was not six. "I'm watching!"

"No, you aren't. You're complaining."

She offered, "I'm multitasking?"

"Fine," Raife stated calmly, "You missed the best part anyway." Spencer turned to look at the window, unsure as to what he was talking about, but Raife grabbed her hand again. "We'll come back," he promised as the snow started to slide out from underneath her and the world began to shake and blur once more.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Chapter three, and I still do not own them…I will continue to not own them, as sad as that is for me.

Author's Note: Thank you so much to everyone who has sent me reviews for this story; it definitely motivates me. And happy holidays (no matter which holiday you're celebrating) to everyone :)

In this story, Clay does not exist. Not because I don't like Clay, but because…well, I'm sure everyone has heard stories about why Clay died on the show; I will not go into it.

Sorry that this took a little while to get out to you, but it's longer than the previous chapters, so I hope that makes up for it a bit.

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"You can open your eyes." The blonde gal obeyed Raife by slowly opening her left eye to examine where they were before trusting herself to open both.

"We're at the park."

Raife allowed himself a sly smile, "You sound disappointed, Spencer. Did I make a bad choice?"

Spencer looked the rocker suspiciously before answering, "I love the park. I'm just trying to understand your choice." Suddenly Spencer grinned, "Jack!" Only her voice echoed. Oh, it wasn't echoing; it was someone else. Someone else was there, and…

_**A girl with dark hair was chasing a small yellow Labrador puppy across the park. The puppy had no collar on, but the girl was holding both a collar and a leash. Apparently the puppy was still a little too small for its new collar, and all the smells in the park were too great to pass up. "Jack! Come back! Jack!" The puppy paused for a moment to look at the girl before slowing to a brisk jog through the park, as opposed to his full-out puppy run. "Jack! I'm serious!"**_

_**The blonde put her camcorder next to her on the bench; she had been taking some video of the park when she had heard the yelling. Spencer looked up from her video screen just in time to see the puppy running toward her, oh, almost past her, but…"Whoa, Bud. I think someone's trying to catch you." She reached her arms out and grabbed him. He seemed pleased enough to meet someone new; he licked her chin. "Hi to you too," he was really adorable and his tail wagged. No wonder someone wanted him back. Spencer was smitten.  
**_

_**The dark-haired girl caught up to them a few seconds later. "Oh my gosh, thank you. Aiden would kill me if I lost him. Who knew they could run so fast?"**_

_**The blonde grinned, still holding the lab. "He's adorable. I can see why your boyfriend would miss him."**_

"_**He's Jack and a terror, and he's not my boyfriend. He's my sister's best friend. Well, she's just a half sister and sometimes he's a boyfriend, but usually not, I think he's secretly...Sorry, hi, I'm Kyla." The girl seemed friendly enough, if a little bit too…bubbly, so Spencer stuck her hand out, the one not holding the puppy, Jack, to shake Kyla's hand.**_

"_**Spencer. It's nice to meet you, Kyla."**_

"_**Likewise," they both smiled at each other momentarily, before they realized there was nothing else to say, and a second seemed to drag into a minute, and suddenly they both realized they were strangers, and that the one had the other's sister's best friend's dog.**_

"_**Here's Jack," Spencer tried her best to keep it from seeming weird. "So, uh, I guess I should get going."**_

_**Kyla accepted the dog, and Spencer had started to walk away when, "Wait! Let me repay you," was shouted from behind the blonde's back.**_

_**She turned around, "For catching a dog? It's okay, like I said, he's adorable."**_

"_**You have no idea how much you saved me by doing that though." Kyla paused to put the dog's collar back on. "And you saved Aiden twenty to life and he doesn't even know it!" Spencer gave the dark-haired girl an odd look, so Kyla explained her previous statement with, "You know, for not killing me…" Spencer smiled and Kyla continued, "Umm, are you into yoga at all?"**_

"_**Sometimes, why?"**_

"_**I help run a yoga class, and if you like, if you have a few minutes, I can get you a coupon for a free class?" Spencer pulled out her cell phone, checking the time. "Look, I swear I'm not crazy, but it's the best idea I have right now, so if you have just a moment, you can come get the coupon?" Spencer put her cell phone back into her pocket. "You and I both know that you just going to leave, because it was weird."**_

_**Kyla was right. Spencer really had nowhere to go that afternoon. She relented with, "Okay."Yoga was good for the body and the soul after all, just like chicken soup. Kyla seemed nice too actually. Spencer tried to rationalize her following a strange girl out of a park mentally.  
**_

"_**Really?"**_

_**Kyla's grin was contagious and so Spencer nodded and repeated her, "Okay," with a matching grin.**_

"We don't have to follow them by walking."

"We don't?" Spencer had been staring at the exchange, transfixed, until Raife had spoken, and now that he was talking, it was still hard for Spencer to pay complete attention to him. She was busy remembering the rest of the day; she didn't even notice when everything around them changed until a voice interrupted her thoughts.

"_**Kyla, I'm home!" Spencer realized that the voice was getting closer to her, and she also realized that she did not recognize this voice, but she really wasn't sure what to say to the voice. "Kyla?" The voice was still getting closer with a, "Kyla!" It was soon followed by a, "Oh, you're not Kyla."**_

_**Spencer looked up to notice the tan girl standing next to her. She was…wow. Not that Kyla wasn't wow too, but this girl was…wow. And her voice and…Spencer wasn't usually this shallow, but she couldn't help the shy smile that came out next, "Definitely not."**_

"_**I'm Ashley."**_

"_**I'm Spencer."The girls shook hands and exchanged smiles. **_

_**Spencer was busy recovering from her stupor and Ashley was busy trying to find the right words. "Look, you're a friend of Kyla's, right? You're not, like, breaking into our apartment and stealing everything in sight are you?"**_

_**Spencer was momentarily stunned, but then Ashley broke out into a grin, complete with a nose crinkle, and the blonde realized she was joking, so she did the logical thing…she joked back. "Just this bottle of water…and a yoga coupon once Kyla finds them."**_

"_**I suppose that's okay," Ashley allowed another nose crinkle. "So how come I haven't seen you around before?"**_

"_**You're her sister, right?" Spencer remembered Kyla saying that her sister lived with her when they had first walked into the apartment. It really had just been a short walk from the park, but now Spencer had been sitting in their kitchen for fifteen minutes while Kyla ran around the apartment searching for the coupon. Ashley nodded and Spencer continued easily, "Just checking…you know, making sure that you're not breaking into her apartment and stealing everything in sight."**_

"_**Witty."**_

"_**Kyla and I just met today actually."**_

_**The blonde meant to explain the situation more, but Kyla chose that moment to walk back into the kitchen. "Spencer, I'm really sorry I'm just having no…Oh, hi, Ash."**_

"_**Hey Kyla," Ashley smiled, no nose crinkle that time Spencer noted.**_

_**Kyla was still her bubbly self, even with no luck on the coupon front apparently. "Oh! Ashley, since you're home, you can do me a favor…"**_

"_**No."**_

"_**You don't even know what it is yet."**_

"_**No."**_

"_**Just come with Spencer and me to the gym for a class."Ashley was busy a water bottle for herself out of the fridge, but she paused long enough to stand up and raise a single eyebrow at her sister. "Come on, it's the only way I can get Spencer signed up for free; I can't find those damn coupons anywhere, and I have to teach…but you could keep her company!"**_

_**Ashley took a sip of her water and let out a wistful sigh, "So I would get to be all downward facing dolphin?"**_

_**Kyla corrected, "Dog. Not dolphin."**_

"_**It's okay, I, really, I don't need to go."Both girls turned to look at the previously silent Spencer who shrugged in response to their looks. "What? I don't have to go."**_

"_**Yes, you do. I owe you something. Ashley just doesn't understand the love of yoga yet." Kyla continued, "It could be fun."**_

_**Spencer had to agree, "It could be fun."**_

_**Ashley looked at the blonde girl's hopeful face."Spencer…"**_

"_**Carlin," the blonde provided.**_

"_**Spencer Carlin, you are a dangerous weapon. I'm not sure yoga is ready for me, but it's going to have to be."**_

"_**Goody!" Kyla clapped her hands happily and Spencer laughed.**_

The Present Day Spencer looked at Raife. She frowned, "Do I really have to see how I look doing yoga?" He just laughed and the scenery changed.

_**Kyla stood at the front of the room with the real yoga instructor. Apparently she was working her way up the totem pole until she get to be a real instructor; she was fairly new to the area, so she didn't have enough seniority to have her own class yet. "And reach your hands up and…"**_

_**Spencer and Ashley were in the back of the room, and admittingly they were only paying a little bit of attention to the class. They couldn't help but talk; it was just too exciting to meet a new person to pay complete attention to the stretches. Ashley whispered, "Favorite color?"**_

"_**Depends, is it on my wall or on me?"**_

"_**Good point." Ashley gave it a thoughtful momentary pause, "I don't want to answer that one now either…"**_

"_**Guys!"Kyla had taken the time to wander to the back of the room to yell, well, whisper yell, at them.**_

"_**Sorry," Spencer apologized and Ashley just smiled at her sister. **_

_**The blonde continued after Kyla had walked a few feet away, "Biggest fear?"**_

"_**Eating bad sushi."**_

"_**Seriously."**_

"_**Have you ever had bad sushi?"Spencer shook her head 'no'. Ashley solemnly nodded, "Then don't judge."But she cracked a smile at the end of it anyway. "I'll explain it sometime; it really is a funny story when you're not busy trying to balance on one leg." It was Spencer's turn to smile…and almost fall over. "What's yours?"**_

"_**Currently? Getting lost in New York and not being able to find my way back to campus."**_

"_**NYU?"**_

"_**Yup. Freshman."**_

_**Kyla had wandered to the back of the room again, due to the look that the instructor was giving the two girls. She glared, "You two can continue your conversation in the hallway." Spencer muttered an apology and Ashley simply cracked up.**_

_**Spencer waited until they were in the hallway before asking Ashley the important question. "Did Kyla really just kick us out?"**_

_**Ashley grinned, "I think so."**_

"_**Huh," the blonde was a bit perplexed. "I've never been kicked out of anything before."**_

"_**I've never been to a yoga class before." Ashley's grin really was contagious. "There's a first time for everything, right?"**_

"_**Definitely a first time for everything," Kyla interjected. "I've never had to kick someone out five minutes before the session ended."**_

"_**You coulda kicked out us earlier," Ashley taunted.**_

"_**But then I wouldn't have gotten to see you almost fall over."**_

"_**Hey!"**_

_**Spencer giggled and two brunettes whipped their heads around to look at her oddly. "You two are so related."**_

"_**And you two are so not allowed back into my yoga class." Before anyone could add anything else, Kyla's cell phone began to ring. "Aiden! Hi. No, I didn't lose your dog. Jack's at my apartment and he's just fine…"**_

Present Day Spencer giggled as she listened into Kyla's phone conversation. "Good memories?" Raife asked. Spencer nodded.

"Hey? Where'd it go? I…Oh…" The wooden floors were disappearing below Spencer's feet again.

"We have places to go; people to see."


	4. Chapter 4

Author's note: Thank you so much to everyone who reviews this. I really truly do appreciate it. Also, I'm sorry that this isn't that long of an update, but I wanna still to get this little bit out there as I feel it is an important (though a bit short) chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own them. Really.

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"So, we're back to their apartment?"

"Yup," Raife nodded and looked around. "Because that's where you are…again."

Spencer looked to where Raife pointed, and there she was. He was right. The three girls had met and clicked, as corny as it sounded. After meeting Kyla and Ashley, the three of them started to hang out fairly frequently…as in, they hung out more often than not. Sometimes it would be the three of them, sometimes just Kyla and Spencer, and sometimes it was just Ashley and Spencer. It depended on the situation really.

"This was a Kyla and Spencer night." Raife nodded again. "Because that was the night that we tried to make cheesy popcorn ourselves…" She looked at the bowl of cheesy popcorn that was balanced on her past-self's lap. "Kyla had left to go do something…so I had put on the history channel at random until she came back, so we could watch another movie." Raife just nodded again, hoping to let the younger girl know that he was listening without interrupting her rambling. He wasn't the one to interrupt it…

"_**Hey Spencer!"**_

"_**Hey Ash, what's up?"**_

"_**I'm going out with Aiden tonight. How about you?"**_

"_**I plan on vegging out on your couch all night." Spencer lifted the bowl of cheesy popcorn in an attempt to show off her 'vegging out' idea. **_

"_**Did you really just say vegging out?"**_

"_**I really did."**_

"_**I can't believe you."Spencer stuck her tongue out at Ashley which apparently caused Ashley to do the exact same thing back, though in the future, Ashley would deny doing such things.**_

_**Kyla walked back into the room holding a few cans of soda. "What'd Spencer do?"**_

_**Ashley eyed Spencer before deciding what to say exactly. "She used an improper word…plus she's taking up our couch for the night."**_

"_**I know. We're having girls' night."**_

"_**Hey! I'm a girl. Or did you two not get that memo?"**_

_**Spencer tilted her head to the side, looking as Ashley and Kyla as if she were confused. "There was a memo?"**_

"_**Ass," Ashley did the thing with the sticking out of her tongue at Spencer again.**_

_**Kyla rolled her eyes, "You're going out with Aiden, aren't you?"**_

"_**Yes," Ashley lamented.**_

"_**So you wouldn't be able to be here anyway."**_

"_**I would have had I known!"**_

"_**Mm-hmm," Spencer interrupted the two sisters to mutter her obvious disagreement with Ashley.**_

"_**Fine." Ashley was still obviously slightly upset with the situation, though mostly jokingly upset, she pulled out her cell phone and pushed a few buttons. "Aiden, they're having girls' night without me. Yeah…Yeah… Why does everyone make the joke about the memo?!...Okay. Yeah…Mmhmm. K. Thanks." **_

_**Spencer chuckled, "That was quick."**_

"_**That was Aiden." Both girls whipped their heads to look at Kyla oddly. "I so did not mean that the way it sounded. I swear."**_

"_**Yeah, well…What're we up to then? My night is now open."**_

_**Kyla quipped, "Yoga."**_

_**Ashley's mouth opened for a second, but no words came out, so she quickly shut it and settled for looking up at the ceiling, ignoring her sister. Spencer broke the silence with her laughter and, "That look was priceless."**_

_**Ash recovered fairly quickly with, "Move over, for that remark you don't get the whole couch anymore."**_

Spencer smiled as she watched her old self move over on the couch, officially letting the Davies girl sit on the couch with her. "That was the first time that Ashley blew off hanging out with Aiden to hang out with me."

"The first time?"

Spencer looked at Raife and attempted to not roll her eyes. "Don't act like you don't know."

"I just like listening to what you have to say. It's more fun than being the omnipresent being sometimes."

There was a long moment of silence, perhaps not as long as Spencer thought it was though. Nonetheless she broke it eventually with her thoughts, "Are you ready to tell me what this is all about yet?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

Spencer resisted the urge to stamp her foot. "But you're the one who is showing me these memories."

"They're your memories."

"Fine," she huffed, trying to not act bratty, but she was confused, "I'm not ready."

"Me either."

"You're infuriating."

"Why thank you." Raife smiled once Spencer took his outstretched hand in hers. "Come on, let's go."

"Now's when the floor is going to do the spinning thing…and oh, yup…it is…"


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: I've been completely out of the realm of fanfiction for a while, no writing or reading it even. And I'm really sorry about that. There's been stuff in life that has to come before my fanfiction wants, so I've been involved with that. I'm back now. For anyone still reading this, or anyone new and wanting to read this, hello, I hope you enjoy. To anyone who is sticking around, I thank you. Actually, I thank all of you for reading this. I appreciate it. I also appreciate feedback if you feel so inclined.

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to "South of Nowhere". I am just lucky enough to borrow them. Also, Landon and Hayley are made-up characters, but no worries, they won't be necessary for most of the story. Just a little of backstory for Spencer. And yes, there are a few certain lines of this update that may bring you back to a certain episode of "South of Nowhere"...you know, when Spencer and Ashley are lying on the bed together, and there's a photo of Ashley and another girl on the bedstand? Or maybe it won't. Depends on the reader/viewer.

* * *

Spencer's world stopped spinning and she was standing in her bedroom. "Oh, look, it's me on the telephone. This must be the exciting flashback that will reveal everything to me."

Raife rolled his eyes, "Sarcasm doesn't suit you, Carlin. Leave that to me."

"_**You know that's not true. I can't help that I moved to New York; I did what I needed to do, and no, I didn't move here to get away from you. Don't flatter yourself." **_

"Oh shit! I remember this phone conversation. Can I skip this? I'm really not sure what reliving this conversation will do for me."

"We already skipped one of your memories. Do you really want to skip this one too? You're going to end up failing Flashbacks 101 if you keep doing this." Spencer eyed Raife Davies skeptically, trying to figure out how serious he was; she really wasn't good at failing things. She didn't like failing. "If you don't begin to figure this out, then you will take longer and longer to wake up in the real world, Spencer. I suggest that you watch and listen and remember. You need to do some thinking sooner or later and begin to know what's going on." Spencer's face immediately looked worried, and Raife felt sorry for the girl. "It's okay if it takes a little while, Spencer, it's not like I have anywhere to go. Just watch the memories, okay?"

_**Spencer was still on the phone. She was lying on her bed with her hand over her eyes. "No, it's not like that. I left, because college was an excellent opportunity."There was a pause on Spencer's side of the conversation, and she took a moment to sigh. "And we're not dating anymore. You left me, Landon, not the other way around. Yeah, you left me for Hayley, remember, the ex that you claimed you were over until we started dating? Then after a few days, oh yeah, you weren't over her anymore."**_

_**Spencer's tone became surprisingly frustrated as she continued. Most people didn't make her sound like that, at least not people that weren't her brother or mother. "Landon, I tried to be friends with you. I asked you to not talk about Hayley for a few days; I asked you to give me a little space. I couldn't be around you all of the time anymore; that hurt me to be around you that much right away. You were my best friend before we started dating, but you seemed to forget that the moment we started to date."**_

_**The blonde sat up on her bed and opened her eyes, revealing her red eyes. She'd obviously been crying earlier. "Yeah, I know that after I told my parents about everything…You were there for me... Only then you really weren't there for me, because Hayley ended up being the one trying to comfort me." Spencer sighed again, "Yeah, well, if you can't see that you were the one to mess this up, not me, then fuck you." She clicked her phone shut and threw it down onto her bed. She was tempted to throw it against the wall, but she had seen drunken friends do that when upset, and it always ended with a large phone bill and nothing better.**_

"_**Is this a bad time?" Ashley was leaning against her door frame. Spencer was pretty sure that she had locked her door behind her…Then again, if anyone could break into her place, it'd probably be the brunette.**_

"_**Holy shit, Davies. You scared me."**_

"_**I noticed. You don't usually use my last name, Carlin. That's my deal." Ashley allowed herself a silly half-lopsided grin. "So what's wrong?"**_

_**Spencer laid back down on her bed, "Dating sucks."**_

"_**Yeah? Was that your boyfriend?"**_

_**Spencer laughed, "No."**_

"_**Didn't you date Landon?"**_

_**Ashley knew part of the story, as the two girls had been hanging out pretty frequently, but some of the blanks were fuzzy or empty completely when it came to the blonde's dating past. "I did. Until a few months before I left for New York City. We were best friends in California, but then we dated. As it turns out, Landon wasn't really over the ex, Hayley. So, we broke up. But then Landon was kind of a bitch and brought Hayley over just a few days after we were over, though I asked for that to not happen for a little while. Then some stuff happened with my family, so my parents weren't really talking to me for a while…Glen was pretty okay though, eventually. It just kinda sucked. And then one night Landon came to hang out with me, and Haley came with, and Landon tried to hook up with Hayley on my bed. Only, Hayley tried to hook-up with me while Landon was doing that…" Spencer had been rambling and had barely taken a breath. She took a deep one to notice the brunette staring at her with raised eyebrows.**_

"_**That's messed up, Spence."**_

"_**I know."**_

_**Ashley laid down beside her friend, hoping to be comforting, "Boys are stupid."**_

_**Another laugh emitted from the blonde's lips, "Yeah."**_

_**Ashley's fingers toyed with Spencer's hand lightly as she tried to reassure her friend, "Good thing they're not the only choice."**_

"_**Yeah."**_

_**Ashley's eyebrows shot up, "Really, Spence? I didn't peg you on being so easy about my saying that."**_

_**Spencer rolled onto her side to face her friend, "Can I tell you something, Ashley?"**_

"_**Anything."**_

"_**Promise not to freak out?"**_

_**The brunette cocked her left eyebrow, "Did you murder someone?"**_

"_**No."**_

"_**Are you planning on it?"**_

"_**No."**_

"_**Is it me?"**_

"_**Ash!"Spencer finally laughed, which was what the brunette was aiming for, and swatted playfully at Ashley's arm before moving to lie on her back.**_

"_**Sorry…" The brunette pretended to be in deep thought as she moved so that her head was on Spencer's stomach. "Did you eat the last of my oreos?" **_

"_**Yes," Spencer admitted, "but that wasn't what I was talking about."**_

"_**Shit, really? I was totally kidding when I accused you of that. Actually, I blamed Kyla earlier for that…"**_

_**Hoping to interrupt the rambling Davies, Spencer blurted out, "I'm gay."**_

_**Ashley rolled off of Spencer's stomach so that she could look her friend in the eye. "But your ex is a guy? Is that why it didn't work out?"**_

"_**Landon's a girl. Her real name is Tricia, but she somehow ended up with the nickname Landon."**_

"_**Oh…"**_

_**Spencer didn't know what else to do, so she rambled some more. "And the argument that I got into with my parents was when I came out to them. I was upset, so Landon came over to hang out, one of the first times we'd really hung out since we'd stopped dating and sleeping together…and she brought her sorta-girlfriend/sorta-ex-girlfriend with. She spent the whole night trying to get on Hayley."**_

"_**And Hayley tried to get with you?"**_

"_**In a weird sorta-way, yeah. She was holding my hand, and she spooned with me, and…she gave me a back massage at some point. We all slept in my bed that night."**_

"_**That's really weird." Spencer's smile completely disappeared, and Ashley realized how she sounded. "The fact that you all slept together is weird, not that you're gay." Spencer raised her eyes and tentatively smiled. "I'm completely okay with the fact that you're gay, Spence. After all, I kinda began to wonder after none of the guys that asked you out ever even made it to one date with you." Spencer laughed, "Besides, I'm…not into labels."**_

"_**So, you're bi?" Spencer asked.**_

"_**Not into labels."**_

"_**Cool," Spencer nodded, not sure what else to do with the conversation.**_

"_**Cool." Awesome, Ashley didn't know where to go either with the conversation. There was a pause, then, "Oh my God though, Spence, I swear I'm not hitting on you 24/7 or anything."**_

"_**Ash, I know that's just how you are. You seem flirtatious without flirting, and you do that with everyone."**_

"_**K, good, because I don't wanna ruin this."**_

_**Spencer chuckled, albeit it was a slightly bitter chuckle, "I've already tried dating my best friend, and now she and I are no longer friends. Though, she blames me, apparently I ruined our friendship by not wanting to hang out with her again once Hayley broke up with her. Anyway, no worries, I don't wanna date my best friend again." The blonde shrugged, hoping that would mean that she wouldn't have to share anything else that evening, because the phone conversation with Landon wore her out, "Are we going out tonight?"**_

"_**I'm actually in the mood for movies, pizza, and snuggling."**_

_**Spencer's eyes narrowed, "Are you leaving me for Aiden?"**_

"_**Nope, he and I aren't dating currently. You and I are going to order pizza and go get movies. By the time that we get back from getting movies, the pizza should be here." Ashley grinned at her ingenious idea.**_

"_**Ready?" Spencer asked as she began to look around the room for her purse.**_

"_**Nope," Ashley stated easily, pulling the blonde back down onto the bed, "Snuggling first." Ashley put her right arm out and waited for the blonde to cuddle into the crook of her arm. "See, you fit perfectly, Spence. That's why we have to be cuddle buddies along with best friends."The blonde just smiled.**_

Raife rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, "Are you understanding anything yet, Spencer?"

"Besides that you invade my privacy like crazy?" Spencer folded her arms protectively across her chest, obviously not enjoying the conversation.

"Oh, so we're into the denial stage still?"

"Are you trying to tell me that I'm grieving?"

"Definitely not."

"Well, then what the hell are you trying to tell me?"

"Ooh, feisty Spencer, I like it! You move quickly. You're already in the anger stage."

"I don't understand what you're trying to freaking tell me."

"Definitely in the anger stage," Spencer narrowed her eyes angrily at him. "Come on, Angry Carlin, now is the perfect time to show you this."


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I still do not own them.

Rating: PG-13-esque. There is some swearing.

Author's Note: So, this update took me a ridiculously long time to sit down and write. In fact, I'm not sure if anyone is still reading this anymore. But today, I woke up and wrote this entire chapter. So, in case anyone is still reading this, I apologize for it taking me so ridiculously long to write this, but I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Also, just an fyi, the flashbacks are going in sequential order for the most part, starting from when Spencer first meets the girls and going back toward present-day time. The only flashback that is out of order is the one that Spencer didn't see the end of it, because she was busy complaining to Raife, but we'll come back to that one anyway, so it'll end up in order And remember, the sections that are bolded are the memory and the parts that are not bolded are going to be Present Day Spencer and Raife and their observations.

* * *

Spencer felt the ground beneath her feet harden, and Spencer saw the buildings around her begin to materialize. She was starting to get the hang of this whole time-traveling thing. Well, kinda anyway. Raife was next to her, seemingly not fazed about the appearance of random buildings as the past world shaped itself. Apparently he had done this more than she had. Well, of course he had. That made sense. He was the spirit in this situation after all; she had never been concussed before. Though, this probably didn't happen every time that someone was knocked on unconscious. Raife whistled and tilted his head toward one of the buildings; this knocked Spencer out of her stupor, and it made her curious as to where they were this time.

She spotted herself standing outside of Ashley's and Kyla's house. She was knocking, but no one was answering. She remembered that she was supposed to be hanging out with Kyla that particular day. It was spring, and the birds seemed to be chirping especially loud that day. Spencer saw her past self noticed the loud chirping and look toward the telephone wire where the birds were sitting as well. Past-Spencer knocked again.

Kyla had a date with a mystery man that Friday, and it, for once, really was a mystery. She refused to tell Ashley and Spencer where she was going and who she was going with. It was nice to see Kyla that excited about someone, so Spencer didn't think too much about who the guy was, but Ashley was pissed, to say the least. That's right. That's why Spencer was at the apartment that day, she had agreed to go shopping with Kyla for a new outfit for her date on Friday. But Ashley wasn't home. Ashley, being Ashley, was avoiding the apartment in hopes of Kyla's realizing that she was angry about not knowing about who the mystery man was. The birds chirped loudly again, and now Spencer wondered if that was supposed to be some kind of omen. "You ready?" Raife asked, and Spencer nodded. Together, they walked toward the house, and just as they arrived at the house, the door flew open.

**For the Spencer of the past, the door flew open after what seemed like an eternity (but was really only a few minutes) and revealed Kyla clad in a towel. "Hey Spence," Kyla greeted, "Sorry that it took me so long to answer the door; I was in the shower. I kinda lost track of time this morning, but now that I'm done showering, I just need a few more minutes to get ready." She moved to the side, so that Spencer could go inside, but she shut the door before Raife and Spencer could also enter.**

Spencer tried to open the door, but her hand went through the doorknob. "Now what?" she asked Raife while she was still trying to find a way to make her hand connect with the door knob. She gave up after a few more seconds, but Raife still hadn't replied, so she looked over at him. He was gone. "Seriously, dude, you're just gonna leave me out here?" She kicked at the door, but her foot just avoided the door anyway, as though there was a force-field around it.

Raife poked his out through the middle of the door, "Did you just call me dude?" Spencer's eyes widened as they stared at his lack of body. "Okay, I'll ignore the name-calling, because you're missing your own memories here. Hurry up." Spencer tried the doorknob again to no avail, and then Raife poked his head back out of the middle of the door a few seconds later. "What's up, slow poke?" Spencer showed him that she couldn't open the door. "Oh that," Raife muttered, "think about walking through the door, and then you'll be able to. You already exist in this world, so now, long story short, you don't need to open the door. Just walk through it."

"Can't I just think myself there?"

"This is faster." Spencer tried to walk through the door, but she reverberated off of it. "Okay, well, this should be faster anyway. Think about walking through the door."

"I am."

"Think harder," Raife paused, then he had a new idea. "Close your eyes and walk forward." Spencer obeyed.

"It didn't work," she complained, but then she opened her eyes and realized that it had worked as she was suddenly inside the Davies girls' house. "How'd that happen?"

"You were thinking too much about it, but that's okay. I don't think we missed any of the good stuff anyway.

**Kyla was straightening her hair in the bathroom, but the door was open, so she was able to talk to Spencer, who was leaning against the door frame. "So, I'm thinking that I already know what dress I want, but I want a second opinion, so that I know it's a good choice. Thank you again for agreeing to come with me today."**

"**Look at you being all nervous about a date," Spencer grinned, "It's so different than usual. I have to admit that I'm pretty curious about who this guy is…"**

**Kyla blushed, "Don't worry about it, Spencer." She quickly changed the subject, "Do you want to go to the kitchen? I was making tea for us to drink on the way there; the water should be ready."**

"**Sure," Spencer agreed, and she went downstairs. Raife and Spencer followed, and they all started to walk toward the kitchen, but there was some rustling from down the hall. Despite the fact that it was her own memory, both Spencers turned their heads toward the sound. She quietly called out, "Kyla?" But there was no response. There was some more rustling and a strange zipping noise. Someone had broken into the apartment!**

**Spencer grabbed the umbrella that was leaning against the wall and snuck down the hallway. She thought that she was being quiet, but then the floor creaked beneath her feet and the sound suddenly stopped. She heard a quiet, "Kyla?" She knew that voice…She gripped the umbrella tighter but still threw the door to Kyla's room open. **

"**Spencer!" Aiden was standing inside the room. He was wearing only his jeans. And the bed was a mess. So was his hair. And he looked scared shitless. **

**Click, click, click, went the wheels in Spencer's brain, and her eyes widened, "Holy shit."**

"**Spence, did you get the tea?" Kyla walked over and saw the situation. "You were supposed to be gone by now," she hissed at Aiden.**

**Aiden fumbled with his shirt and pulled it over his head, "I fell back asleep. I woke up when I heard you talking to Spencer; I was hoping I'd be able to leave while you were both upstairs."**

**They both suddenly seemed to remember that Spencer was standing there. At the same time, they both insisted, "It's not what it looks like."**

**Spencer took a deep breath and asked, "Aiden's your date on Friday, isn't he?" No one answered, and that was all the answer that the blonde needed. Kyla was busy rambling, and Aiden was completely silent, but Spencer wasn't listening anyway. She was thinking.**

**This was bad. Really bad. Kyla should not have gone about it this way. Aiden should not have gone about it this way. Ashley was going to flip. In a way, though, Aiden and Kyla made sense. Spencer had to admit that they made more sense than Ashley and Aiden did. And honestly, Spencer always kinda wondered if Kyla was in love with Aiden. She always took care of his puppy for him, and she was so protective of him, and she always hung out with him, as friends, even when he and Ashley weren't dating at the time. But, Ashley and Aiden had been dating on-and-off for years. In the time that Spencer knew them all, she never thought that Ashley and Aiden were meant for one another, as it always seemed a bit off when they were together as more than friends. Spencer wondered if it was mostly a physical thing and a remembrance thing, as they'd been dating on-and-off for awhile now.**

**It was always weird to see them cuddle, though, and now it made sense why Kyla was around less whenever Aiden and Ashley were together. But still, it was an accepted fact in their group that Ashley and Aiden would hook up, and they would date sometimes. They would date other people, and then they would be together. When they were younger, perhaps they were good for one another, but as far as Spencer had ever seen, they seemed just as lonely when together as they did when apart. They would fight and bicker, and at least one of them often ended up speeding off in their car before the end of the date. They would be upset and not right for one another, and they would seek out the people that made them feel better. Spencer was not sure how many times she had opened her door to find an upset Ashley outside of her dorm room. Spencer had not really wondered where Aiden went after the fights, but now, she realized that he probably went to Kyla. It was a lot to process, and honestly, Spencer wasn't sure if there was anyone to blame or not. What if it was love? And maybe, just maybe, that is why Spencer still hadn't said anything yet. Maybe that's why the three of them were still just standing there stupefied and unsure of what to say when Ashley came home.**

"**What's up?" She asked, and they all jumped. No one heard her come in. **

"**I should go," Aiden muttered and bolted. Present Day Spencer briefly wondered if she could flee from this memory, but she knew that she should watch it. There was a reason why Raife was showing it to her, so both Spencers stayed. "See you guys later," he stammered as he ran out the door.**

**Spencer heard Kyla sigh quietly, but neither of them said anything. Maybe it was best to at least let Aiden leave the situation. Let one of them avoid what was about to happen.**

"**What's up with him? That was weird." Ashley smiled at them, still not realizing what was going on. **

"**Um, Ash, about that…" Kyla began. "There's something I should tell you."**

Kyla was acting strange. Ashley was going to notice. And Ashley's noticing before Kyla told her was going to make it even worse. Present Day Spencer tried to warn Kyla. She tried to stop Kyla, but there was nothing to be done.

"**What? Are you sleeping with Aiden or something? That makes guys act weird sometimes." And Ashley laughed. But she was alone in laughing. The silence was overwhelming. Outside, the birds chirped, and the sun shone, but inside, the room suddenly felt cold. Spencer noticed Ashley's eyes go toward Kyla's usually-neat bed. Ashley was the messy one that never made her bed; Kyla wasn't the type to do that. She believed that it messed up the flow of energy in the room. **

"**Ash," Kyla began, but Ashley was already backing out of the room.**

"**You really are fucking him, aren't you?"**

**A tear rolled down Kyla's cheek, but none of that mattered right now. Ashley was not currently seeing Aiden, but still, this was not the way for Ashley to find out. Kyla knew that. "It's more than that, Ashley."**

"**More than what I have with him? I've been seeing him for the past five years, Kyla!"**

"**And within that time, you've only been actually dating him for how long, Ash? A year? Maybe two? And within those years, when were you actually happy with him? You're always happier when you two only hang out as friends, Ash, you know that." **

"**Fuck you."**

"**Ashley, please believe me when I say that I didn't mean for you to find out like this. I didn't mean to hurt you, and I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I think I love him. I think that I have for a long time, but I've been ignoring it. And this," Kyla motioned toward the bed and its messiness, "hasn't been happening for long. I mean, we don't usually…We just…once. He came over to watch a movie, as friends, last week. Remember that? You were out with Spencer. But then, we ended up talking…and planning a date for Friday…We thought it might be worth a try to have a date. And we didn't mean for last night to happen, but we ended up at the same club last night, and…he ended up coming back with me…"**

"**Just stop. I don't need to hear any more of your excuses." Ashley could be cold when she was angry, "Fuck both of you. Oh wait, you're already doing that. Together. Silly me." **

**Spencer, who had been standing off to the side, knowing that this was not her fight, knew that that was when she needed someone the most. And despite her best judgment, she just couldn't take the two sisters arguing anymore, so she interjected, "Ash…"**

**But Ashley interrupted her, "Don't, Spence. I thought that you were different. I thought that I could trust you, but I guess I'm just surrounded by liars. Lucky me." And before it could be explained that Spencer didn't know about Kyla and Aiden until a few minutes prior to Ashley's coming home, and before Kyla could attempt a better explanation and apology, Ashley flew out the front door.**

Present Day Spencer watched the memory of herself run out the front door after Ashley. She didn't have to follow to see what would happen; she knew that Ashley was already in a taxi and that there were no other taxis in sight. Spencer knew that she had gone back inside the apartment a few moments later, and that Kyla was crying. She knew that she had been too shocked to cry. And most importantly, she knew that there was no fixing the situation. She knew that she just had to watch it play out, so she wasn't really surprised when the floor began to spin again. She knew what she would be shown next. She didn't even flinch when she felt Raife's hand fall heavily onto her shoulder and then lightly squeeze it, "Come on, Kid. Let this memory go for now. We gotta get going."


End file.
